Actually - despite not liking the gun, I do like the way it looks.
Have you shot one?
Mine chewed the living crud out of the back of my hand & the recoil was excessive (IMHO).
Mind you - when I say that about the recoil, I have and shoot a S&W M29 w/a 4" barrel and a few .357mags also - so I'm not recoil shy in the least.

The PPK/s was just - different.
The thin backstrap just punished the palm of my hand after ~ the second magazine.

Defiantly not something I'd care to shoot more than just enough to stay sharp with it.

My PPk/s wasn't bad for the first 10 or so shots.
By the time I'd gotten about 2/3 into the box of .380 ammo, it'd started to really hurt.
The sting and pain from the two furrows the slide had sliced in the back of my hand sort of took my mind off the pain in the palm though.

Despite all that....

Yeah - they are really, really, really cool guns.
If the right one in blue in .32acp @ the right price came along I'd probaly give into temptation....

I personally don't like the looks of the S&W PPK frame. The extension of the tang (beaver tail) ruins the looks of the gun IMHO. I would look for an older Interarms gun.
Like you as a kid, I was drawn to them by the James Bond mystique. I currently have a stainless PPK .380 (Interarms), a PPK/s .380, and a Manurhin PP .32, they are all fun to shoot.

Before you drop the big bucks for a new S&W PPKs, try to find a Walther German made one. There is a world of difference in quality. I ended up getting rid of those two becuase I found some older, German made ones.

The problems with this are that (a) there is zero chance of getting factory service for a "Made in West Germany" PPK (more about this below...) and (b) the collectable nature of these guns has, in my experience, driven prices for a VG+ example above and beyond a new S&W-produced pistol, which IMHO makes it hard to justify ruining the finish by sticking it in a sweaty IWB holster.

Prices for the later Interarms and Manurhin-badged guns are generally lower than a new S&W, but again, no factory service.

Also, my apologies if you already know this, but the postwar "Made in West Germany" PP-series pistols had frames, barrels, and other major parts made by Manurhin in France, then sent to W. Germany where they were finished, assembled, and proofed. This arrangement was initially made due to immediate postwar German arms restrictions and a lack of plant capacity on the correct side of the Iron Curtain, but was reportedly continued in later decades because it was profitable for Walther and it freed up German plant space for German military contract pistols. Walther's subsequent attempt to terminate the French production arrangement resulted in the infamous "Walther Wars" of the 1980s in which Manurhin started exporting completed PPK/S's to the USA under their own moniker. Interarms became the sole American market producer of the PP-series in the legal fallout from the Walther-Manurhin feud. The Interarms license went to S&W after the former company permanently folded ca. 2001.

Quote:

If you are dead set on getting a new one, then I would wait. S&W and Walther are in the process of undoing their business relationship, and very soon PPKs will be once again made in Germany!

Every press release and news report I've seen about the S&W-Walther split indicates that S&W will continue to produce the PPK series for the foreseeable future, and that the same is true for the Walther-made M&P22.

The PPK cannot be legally imported because it famously fails the 1968 GCA import points test by a single point. All German/French PPKs sold new in the USA through regular commercial channels were imported prior to 1969. The PPK/S was designed to skirt the restrictions, but it would make little sense to divide production of two very similar pistols between two plants on opposite sides of the Atlantic.

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Last edited by carguychris; November 2, 2012 at 11:45 AM.
Reason: Minor reword...

Congrats vireye! Thanks for posting--it was nice of you to post pictures without any harassment Quite a good looking pistol you ended up with.

I would like to snag one, but they just keep getting pushed down the list in favor of others.

I like the idea of going for the "classic" look, just like I prefer the classic GI 1911 and CZ75 over the newer models. But just like I had to compromise and go with a beavertail tang on my 1911 and CZ75 due to hammer bite and/or discomfort, I suspect I will have to give in and go with a S&W model with its beavertail. I am curious to hear how yours treats you.

Hoping to get it to the range tomorrow for a quick evaluation/break-in. I have small-to-average hands, so I don't THINK slide-bite will be too much of an issue. I was originally planning to get a S&W, but by sheer luck happened across this beauty at the LGS. Some of the guys over on the Walther Forums believe that its one of the earlier Interarms, from the early to mid 80's, which would make it older than I am (Born in '89), which makes the shape its in that much more impressive... tag price was about $50 more than a new S&W around here ($500), but I had a trade-in, plus a few discounts, so I pay about $200 plus the trade in for the weapon and some ammo.

I had shot my PPK several times when I found out about the recall. (Even though I was registered with S&W they didn't contact me about the recall, I found out about it in a forum.)

Then I learned that whatever the original problem was, those PPK owners who sent the gun back with the recall paperwork got back their gun with virtually the same issue, or worse, than originally. Soooo... I didn't send mine in for the recall. I still have it and no issues thus far, six or seven years on. The fixed bbl makes it as accurate as my Makarov, and that is very very accurate, particularly for such a small auto.

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